General Eisenhower’s Battle For Control Of The Strategic Bombers In Support Of Operation Overlord

Joint Pub 1, Joint Warfare of the Armed Forces of the United States, has a one page summary of the OVERLORD campaign entitled, “OVERLORD: A Classic Joint and Combined Operation.” In the narrative, the author(s) referenced the OVERLORD command structure with its subordinate commands for land, air, and naval forces and “(after much dispute) what we would call today operational control over US and UK strategic air forces.” This paper is an examination of the parenthetical “after much dispute.” Moreover, it is an appreciation of the dynamics surrounding General Dwight Eisenhower’s strategic leadership and his quest to achieve unity of command. Eisenhower believed unity of command was fundamental to the success of OVERLORD; he threatened resignation without it.